“But no mention of the baby?” That was all Trina cared about.
“No, absolutely no mention of the baby.”
“What! What the hell are you thinking?”
“I don’t want to be tied to that man strictly out of obligation. If the child is not Grey’s then I will raise it alone,” Ivy said still sobbing.
“What about the child? Doesn’t it deserve to have a father?” Trina recalled instantly growing up without a stable male figure.
“Yes. But it will just have to accept what I can offer. That will have to be enough.”
“You don’t have that right!” Trina said stepping out of the stall.
“At this point, I don’t have a choice,” Ivy said flushing the toilet. “It’s already been done. Plus, it could very well be Grey’s baby. All of this could just be a very hard lesson.”
“For that baby’s sake, I pray that you’re right.” Trina said handing her a baby wipe from her purse. “Come on. We better get you somewhere where you can lay down.”
*
Slamming his door as he got out of his truck at the precinct, Nicola hit his alarm on his key ring taking all his frustration out on the small button. For over a month, he had thought about Ivy day and night just to find out that he had only been a one-night stand to her. All that talk was just a way to get him into bed. Hell, she probably had been with plenty of men and was just lying about Grey being the only one. What a fool he had been!
“You alright, man?” Brooks asked watching his partner have a silent fit.
“I don’t want to talk about it?” Nicola replied crossly.
“Well look, I’ll see you tonight at the Black Tie, if you’re still going?” Brooks said hitting him on the shoulder. It was best that he just leave him alone to think.
“Why wouldn’t I go tonight?” Nicola asked looking at his watch.
“Same thing I said,” Brooks shrugged. “See you later, man. Call me if you need to talk.”
*
The moon cast a beautiful glow on the snowy streets of East Memphis as Nicola drove to the Black Tie. He was completely tormented in his thoughts but hopeful that a night with Kit would take the edge off of a perfectly shitty birthday. Pulling into the Black Tie parking lot, he pulled up to the valet and popped out looking for Brook’s truck. He spotted it, sitting faithfully across the way and continued into the club for a release.
Only the best-built, sexiest women worked at the Black Tie. From what Nicola had heard, the club only had an opening call for new girls once a year. It was suppose to be the land of milk and honey for exotic dancers, where the bouncers actually did their jobs, the men were respectable and the money was damned good. For Nicola, it was just a place to get away and enjoy a good drink and the company of beautiful women, without the strain of being interested in a long-term relationship.
“Bring me a Jack and Coke,” Nicola said to the waitress as he sat back in a private booth across from Brooks. He had already had four shots of scotch and a shot of whiskey straight before he left his house, but he aimed to get so drunk that maybe he could forget about Ivy all together.
“What’s up, man?” Brooks asked sipping on a glass of Crown Royale.
“Not a damned thing,” Nicola said giving a leisurely smile. “Just came to see Kit and kick it.”
“I’m glad that you could make it.” Brooks cleared his voice. “Look, I know you said that you don’t to talk about it…”
“And I still don’t” Nicola said putting a single dollar bill in the g-sting of the girl dancing in front of Brooks.
“But the truth of the matter is that you have to face it at some point.” Brooks said watching the young blonde take off her top and plant her oversized well-tanned breasts in his face.
“What is there to face? I thought she was someone that she was not. She’s just a college girl looking to play with a grown man’s mind. And I personally just don’t have time for that type of shit. I’ve got a hard enough time dealing with grown women. I’m not trying to recruit from the junior league, too.” Nicola said taking his drink from the waitress. “Thank you,” he said giving the waitress a tip. “Keep me full, baby.”
“Ivy’s definitely a grown woman, Nicola. I mean, after all, she chose life despite of what it’s going to cost her.” Brooks became offended. “She’s just scared. Hell, can you blame her?”
“Scared. No. No. She’s not scared. She’s manipulative. You should have heard her that night, acting like she really understood me. Like she really wanted to be with me. Hell, she sounded like me trying to get in some woman’s pants. And my dumb ass was falling for it, too. I wouldn’t even tell you that we slept together; that is just how much I respected her. Then today, she just drop the bomb on me and acted like I didn’t mean shit to her.” Nicola gulped down his drink.
“Look, I was shocked when Trina finally broke the news today to me, too. And I admit that is a lot for a man to handle when he barely knows a woman, but you still have a responsibility regardless of how you feel about her.”
“After the what she said to me today, I don’t see how I owe here anything,” Nicola choked as he guzzled down a small shot of tequila.
“Not to her, to whomever is coming.” Brooks looked over at Nicola. “You better quit mixing all of that shit before you make yourself sick.”
“Wait. Who is coming? Brooks what the hell are you talking about?” Nicola asked taking another shot of tequila. “I don’t believe that we are on the same page
